Private place
Encyclopedia
The history of St. Louis, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
and its near suburbs is significant in the development of private places. Most were laid out by Prussian-born surveyor and planner Julius Pitzman
Julius Pitzman
Julius Pitzman was a Prussian-born American surveyor and city planner best known for his development of the private, gated neighborhoods in St. Louis, Missouri from 1867 through about 1914....
, who conceived the idea around 1868 as a way for residential landowners to control real estate speculation and maintain property standards, in an era before the protections of zoning
Zoning in the United States
Zoning in the United States comprise land use state laws falling under the police power rights that State governments and local governments have the authority to exercise over privately owned real property.-Origins and history:...
. Pitzman designed 47 of these developments over a 50-year period.
The first of these, Lucas Place, dates from 1851 and no longer exists as such. But the growth of these developments began in earnest with Benton Place
Benton Park, St. Louis
Benton Park is a neighborhood in eastern St. Louis, Missouri, just west of the Soulard neighborhood. The official boundaries of the area are Gravois Avenue on the north, Cherokee Street on the south, I-55 on the east, and Jefferson Avenue on the west...
, in 1868, a 12-house development adjacent to Lafayette Square, St. Louis
Lafayette Square, St. Louis
Lafayette Square is a neighborhood in St. Louis, Missouri that is bounded on the north by Chouteau Avenue, on the south by Interstate 44, on the east by Truman Parkway and on the west by South Jefferson Avenue. It surrounds Lafayette Park, which is the city's oldest public park, created by...
and is in more-or-less original condition today. Vandeventer Place
Vandeventer, St. Louis
Vandeventer is a neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. The area is bounded by Dr. Martin Luther King Drive on the North, Delmar Boulevard on the South, Vandeventer Avenue on the East, and Newstead Avenue on the West.-History:...
, opened in 1870 and included a house design by H.H. Richardson. Vandeventer Place has been replaced by urban development, with the exception of the east gate, which was removed to Forest Park
Forest Park (St. Louis)
Forest Park is a public park located in western part of the city of St. Louis, Missouri. It is a prominent civic center and covers . The park, which opened in 1876 more than a decade after its proposal, has hosted several significant events, including the Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904 and...
.
These privately-controlled single-family housing communities in the midst of the city are legally organized somewhat similarly to condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
s, co-ops or homeowners association
Homeowners association
A homeowner association is a corporation formed by a real estate developer for the purpose of marketing, managing, and selling of homes and lots in a residential subdivision...
s. As of 1982, the St. Louis metropolitan area had more than 427 street associations administering private places. Although often associated with high-end communities, neighborhoods of various socio-economic natures have been structured as private places.
Private places in the City of St. Louis
- Clifton HeightsClifton Heights, St. LouisClifton Heights is a neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri, located along the southwest border of the city and highlighted by a park—Clifton Park —with a playground and a lake....
(1885) - Westmoreland Place and adjacent Portland Place (1888) - Portland gates designed by Theodore LinkTheodore LinkTheodore C. Link, FAIA, was a German-American architect.Born in Germany, Link trained in engineering at the University of Heidelberg and, later, at the Ecole Centrale in Paris before emigrating to the United States. He moved to St. Louis in 1873 to work for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad...
- Compton HeightsCompton Heights, St. LouisThe Compton Heights historic neighborhood located on the near Southside of the City of St. Louis, Missouri in the shadow of the great water tower of Reservoir Park is one of the earliest planned residential developments of the American nineteenth century...
(1889) - Lewis PlaceLewis Place, St. LouisLewis Place is a neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Lewis Place is defined by Martin Luther King Drive on the North, Delmar Boulevard on the South, Newstead Avenue on the East, and Walton on the West.-History:...
(1890) - Washington TerraceWashington Terrace (St. Louis)Washington Terrace is a residential private place in St. Louis, Missouri, laid out circa 1892. The gate is south of Union and Delmar, within the bounds of the Central West End....
(1892) - Hortense Place (1900)
- Kingsbury PlaceKingsbury PlaceKingsbury Place is a private place neighborhood in St. Louis, Missouri that was founded in 1902.The land had been surveyed by Julius Pitzman, surveyor and planner, who had been the Chief Engineer for Forest Park and who was considered "the father of the private place" in the United States...
(1902) - the gates, #3, #7, and #11 designed by Thomas P. BarnettThomas P. BarnettThomas P. Barnett , also known professionally as Tom Barnett and Tom P. Barnett, was an American architect and painter from St. Louis, Missouri. Barnett was nationally recognized for both his work in architecture and in painting.-Architectural work:Barnett trained under his father, St. Louis...
- Lenox Place (1903)
- Parkview PlaceParkview, St. Louis, MissouriParkview is a historic subdivision of St. Louis, Missouri. It is partly within the city limits of St. Louis and partly in University City. It is bounded by the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood to the east, the Delmar Loop to the north, the Ames Place section of University City to the west,...
(1905), Pitzman's final development
Private places in St. Louis County
- Brentmoor Park (ClaytonClayton, MissouriClayton is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis and the county seat of St. Louis County, Missouri. The population was 15,939 at the 2010 census. The city was organized in 1877 and is named after Ralph Clayton, who donated the land for the courthouse.-Geography:...
) - Carrswold (Clayton)
- Lake Forest (Richmond HeightsRichmond Heights, MissouriRichmond Heights, a city in St. Louis County, is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 8,603 at the 2010 census. According to Robert L. Ramsay, the name was suggested by Robert E. Lee, who thought the topography of the area resembled Richmond, Virginia...
) - Hampton Park (Richmond Heights)
- Fair Oaks (LadueLadue, MissouriLadue is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in central St. Louis County, Missouri, USA. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 8,521....
) - Dromara (Ladue)
- La Hacienda (Ladue)
- Briarcliff (Ladue)
- Picardy Lane (Ladue)
- Chevy Chase (OlivetteOlivette, MissouriOlivette is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 7,737 at the 2010 census.-History:...
)